Coprates Triangle (Aka Hanksville, Utah) - At the MDRS, scientific reality is catching up to science fiction in more ways than one. Among the six real-life scientists and explorers presently living within the habitat, one of the members of Crew 13--the first all-German team, led by Commander Klaus Totzek--is a well-known science-fiction writer. Horst Gehrmann has penned nearly 250 chapters in the ongoing Perry Rhodan pulp series, and on this mission he's serving as the Health and Safety Officer and will be conducting experiments on ultraviolet radiation.

Unfortunately, due to adverse weather conditions, that investigation, and all of the work scheduled for MDRS, did not begin as promptly as planned. The entire crew was delayed in their arrival over the weekend, and consequently the hand-off from the previous crew did not smoothly occur. Nonetheless, the team--which in addition to Totzek and Gehrmann includes Greenhab coordinator Heike Wierzchowski, geologist Sigrid Belzer, and scientists Patrick Diel and Tom Dirlich--are slowly but surely getting into full 'sim' (simulation) mode.

Planning and executing an initial EVA was the group's primary activity for the day. After an early planning session, four members of Crew 13 (Belzer, Diel, Dirlich and Totzek) headed out for approximately one hour to familiarize themselves with the EVA suits and equipment. The crew had extensive trouble operating the radios and affixing the space-suit helmets, which are hurdles the team expects to surmount in the coming weeks.

Throughout the day, a separate German film crew documented Crew 13's activities. That footage will ultimately be shown in Germany and elsewhere, and is expected to contribute to a better international understanding of the MDRS and The Mars Society.

Despite a day filled with minor problems and abbreviated activities, plus some significant communication foul-ups between the MDRS and Mission Support, the first all-German crew appears to be gradually moving into complete 'sim.' The team may not yet be as experienced as German science-fiction idol Perry Rhodan, but there's little question that it's only a matter of time before they acquire their "space legs" and become Germany's true outer-space heroes.